Closures and Anticipatory Sets

So you may be thinking, "Why should I have an anticipatory set? What is the importance of a closure? Who needs them?" Right? Wrong.

Both of these are fundamental for an effective lesson! Think of them like the wrapper paper and bow to a present. You need to start out by laying out your wrapper paper (your anticipatory set) then you place the gift in the middle (your lesson) and wrap it up. At the end you make the gift even more put together by putting ribbons or a bow on it (your closure). It is as simple as that!

Your anticipatory set serves as the "attention-getter" for your lesson and occurs at the beginning of your class period or lesson. This can be as simple as a warmup activity, a short video clip, or a fun mini demonstration. This should take less than 10 minutes (ideally more around 5 or less). It is to get your students thinking about what you are going to be teaching. At some point during the beginning of the class (I typically would do this prior to the anticipatory set), I also find that it is very important to address what the learning target/objectives are for the day so that the students know what they will be learning. This can help add routine and structure to the classroom as well.

Your closure is very important because it ties everything together at the end of your lesson. This, like the anticipatory stem should not take very long. When you are doing a closure activity you are having the students reflect on what they just learned. It helps to get some feedback from your students as to what they learned by having them perform their knowledge in an informal or formal quick and simple assessment. This can be as easy as writing a journal entry summary or completing an exit slip. Personally, I always find that readdressing the learning target/objective at the end of the class really helps keep me on track as well as let's my students visualize exactly what they had accomplished for the day (so they can take more responsibility for their learning, as well).

While I am familiar with the practice and use of anticipatory sets and closures form other courses, I looked up a website to help those that may not be as familiar. This can also simply serve as a jumping off point for those who merely want ideas (even if you are already familiar with them)! There are also some great youtube videos for Math Anticipatory sets (Just be sure that youtube is not blocked at your school).

Math Anticipatory Sets (Reviewed by Math Teachers)